Chapter 452: You’re late, Hyung
<A/N: Back to the Plot y’all>
My phone chimed and I checked to see it was a message from Jie-Yu. She snapped a selfie with Kyle, they were holding ice cream.
Guess they were having fun.
But has it already been an hour since they left?
Ki-hoon hasn’t arrived yet. I wonder what’s taking him so long.
I don’t believe he’s intentionally delaying his arrival since he would do everything in his power to arrive as soon as possible.
Maybe something unforeseen happened, and he thought he could handle it very quickly before meeting me.
Well, he could take his time.
I flipped the page of the book in my hand, immersed in what I was reading.
It was a piece of literature about an old folklore.
I found myself immersing myself in it, even though it was not fantasy or romance like I usually enjoy.
An old potter ran a shop at the outskirts of a village. He was well known for his craft and was very hardworking.
He had a daughter he wanted to marry off but his daughter only had thoughts of helping him in the shop.
She didn’t know, but he was working extra hard to save enough for her dowry.
If he were able to afford an expensive dowry for his daughter, then she would definitely be able to marry into a good home.
He worked his hands raw, fingers cracked and bleeding from the clay and heat, yet every pot that left his kiln was smoother than the last. People praised him, said his wares carried warmth, as if the old man poured his life straight into the earth before shaping it.
One winter, his daughter noticed his cough worsening, the way he paused longer between breaths. She scolded him for overworking himself, but he only smiled and told her that clay waited for no one.
The page blurred for a moment.
I blinked and shifted my grip on the book, thumb rubbing absently at the edge of the paper. Stories like this always did something to me—quietly, without warning. Sacrifice disguised as routine. Love hidden behind labor.
The bell above the bookstore door chimed.
I looked up instinctively.
Ki-hoon stood there, tall frame filling the doorway, his expensive black coat still dusted with cold air, eyes immediately locking onto me like he’d been searching the room even before he stepped inside. Relief washed over his face so fast it was almost embarrassing.
He was dressed too formally for me to say he was coming straight from home.
I can only confirm that he had somewhere to be before he got here.
"Hey," he said in a casual voice, walking over, gaze dropping to the book in my hands.
"You’re late, Hyung," I replied mildly, slipping a bookmark between the pages and closing it. "I got bored, so I started reading."
He crouched slightly in front of me, ignoring the stares from other customers who seemed to have somewhat recognized him.
Can’t blame him. Even without his extra formal and expensive dressing, his handsome face stands out too much.
"Something came up. But it’s nothing serious." He said, but I caught the tightness around his eyes. He reached out, brushing his thumb against my wrist like he needed to confirm I was real. "Did you wait long?"
"Not really." I tilted my head. It was more than an hour now, but the time flew by quickly because I was reading, so it wasn’t too bad. "You look tired."
He smiled, the kind that tried to reassure rather than convince.
"I’m fine."
Liar. Given that he made me wait for so long it was definitely something that he could not ignore, something very important.
It doesn’t look like he wants to tell me what it is, though, so I’ll let it slide.
I stood up, sliding the book back onto the shelf.
"I was reading about an old potter. He’s killing himself to prepare a dowry for his daughter without her knowing."
Ki-hoon hummed thoughtfully.
"Hm, sounds like someone who doesn’t know how to ask for help."
"Or someone who doesn’t want to burden the person he loves."
His eyes softened at that, and for a second, neither of us spoke.
My phone buzzed again.
Another message from Jie-Yu. This time it was a picture of an empty plate and two coffee cups. Still alive. Still intact. Good.
This marked two hours that I waited for Ki-hoon. How time flies without even realizing it.
The reason he was in such a hurry was that he knew he had kept me waiting for too long.
"Everything okay?" Ki-hoon asked.
"Yeah. Just checking on Noona." I slipped my phone away and looked at him properly.
"Noona?"
"Ah, Jie-Yu Noona, she’s older than all of us, haha." I laughed but his tilted eyebrow didn’t make it seem like it was no big deal.
I quickly decided to change the topic.
"So~ Date?" I smiled and he quickly let go of his curiosity as this piqued his interest more.
His lips curved upward, slow and dangerous.
"Where to?"
"Somewhere warm," I said after a second. "You know, it’s been quite cold these days because of the rain."
"Yes," he said.
"Oh, the place should also be quiet, so if you have anywhere in mind, let’s go there."
He stood and offered his hand without hesitation. I took it.
"As you wish," he said. "But you’re not paying for anything."
I snorted, rolling my eyes.
"I wasn’t planning to."
As we walked out together, I stopped and turned.
"Hold on, on second thought, I want that book."
I went back to the bookshelf, picked up the book, and then went to pay for it.
I don’t usually enjoy simple lore like this, but for some reason, it intrigued me.
I also had that reader feeling that made me super curious about how things would end.
He might die, and I might regret seeing the ending of it.
But then again, he might succeed in buying an expensive dowry for his daughter, get her into a good family and then that family might Carter for him, so he never has to work the kiln again.
Well, whatever outcome was going to come of it, I’ll find out.
"Did it interest you that much?" Ki-hoon asked as I walked out happily with the book in a small paper bag.
"Well, let’s just say curiosity killed the cat."
He reached for the bag and took it from me.
"So, where are we heading from here?"
Ki-hoon looked at me, then answered without hesitation.
"Somewhere that sells soup."
"Soup?" I echoed, blinking.
"There’s a good place I know," he said, and for a brief moment, a soft longing crossed his expression, so fleeting I almost thought I imagined it. "You know it too."
"I do?" I blinked and he smiled openly.
I searched my memories, even going as far as massaging my temples to jog it, but nothing surfaced.
I know I’m pretending to have forgotten him, but that doesn’t mean I’m forgetting for real.
I just can’t recall this soup place no matter how hard I thought of it.
Is this old age kicking in?
Still, the way his lips curved upward told me this wasn’t just about food.
"I don’t recall," I added, narrowing my eyes. "Are you sure you’re not just saying that to sound mysterious?"
He chuckled under his breath.
"If I were, I’d be doing a poor job." He said and then nudged me with his shoulder. "Come on, let’s go."
He took the lead, naturally, like this was already decided long before I asked. The guards followed at a respectful distance as we headed toward the car, the rain tapping softly against the pavement.
Once inside, the warmth from the A.C wrapped around me immediately. Ki-hoon gave the driver a brief instruction, the name of the place slipping past me before I could catch it.
"Wait," I said, leaning toward him. "You’re really sure I’ve been there?"
"Yes."
"With you?"
That made him pause.
He turned to me, eyes dark and unreadable for a second before he nodded. "A long time ago."
That only deepened my confusion.
"But I won’t hold it against you since you don’t have all your memories."
"R-right."
How odd for me to forget.
The drive was oddly quiet. I glanced at Ki-hoon, who was doing his best not to feel awkward. The space between us was small, and if he so much as touched me by accident, he would flinch.
Seriously, fufu, he was acting like a kid with a crush.
"What’s wrong?" I asked but he shook his head. "Then why don’t you come closer? I don’t bite."
His ears flushed.
"Don’t tease me like that," he said but I laughed.
It was too fun not to tease him.
Then, the car slowed, pulling into a narrow street far from the busy roads. We passed a school that I knew too well.
Ah, wasn’t that our high school building over there?
I recognize the uniforms on the students moving around.
I turned to Ki-hoon who gave me a knowing smile.
The car stopped in front of a store and Ki-hoon stepped out first and held the door open for me.
I looked up at the sign, then back at him.
"Oh," I said slowly, a little knowingly.
So that’s what he meant.
Now that I see it, how could I not remember?
"Madam Nam’s famous pork rib soup," I mumbled. "It rings a bell."
"Hm, thankfully," he nodded and then smiled at me. "Shall we go in?"
He looked excited.
Why wouldn’t he?
This was like reliving a moment when we were younger, so fresh in love and had no worries at all.